LOS ANGELES – Tide laundry detergent is apparently the latest hot commodity on the black market. Police say thieves all across the country are swiping the bottles right off store shelves.

Police arrested 53-year-old Patrick Costanzo in Minnesota for allegedly stealing over $25,000 worth of Tide over 15 months. Authorities said they weren’t clear why he was stealing the bottles; he possibly was reselling the bottles for a discounted price to small businesses

“On the street he’d get money for it,” said one woman who remained anonymous. “Because a lot of people use Tide and it’s expensive- especially in this town.”

“It’s like he put the pieces in like Tetris pieces to maximize the volume of that cart, there was no wasted space,” said Shawn Melville from the Saint Paul Police Department.

Each box goes for about $10 to $20. Authorities say that some of the bottles are being resold to make a profit, and some are even being traded for drugs. In response, CVS stores across the nation have begun to install security devices on all of their Tide products.